Three quarters of construction product manufacturers still rely on PDFs to share product information, despite most calling digital data critical, according to new NBS research.
The findings come from Closing the Specification Gap, a new guide published by NBS, which surveyed construction product manufacturers across the UK on their sales and marketing approaches.
The research found that 85% of manufacturers are targeting architects and specifiers in an effort to influence specification decisions, yet 72% still rely on referrals and existing relationships as their primary lead source.
NBS said referrals were reactive by nature, whereas specification decisions typically develop over time through research, product discovery, comparison and ongoing engagement. It argued that manufacturers who are not visible earlier in that process risk competing for opportunities that have, in effect, already been decided.
A similar gap emerged around product information. While 67% of manufacturers said digital product information is critical to their business, 77% still rely on PDFs to deliver it. NBS said static documents cannot be searched, filtered or compared within the digital workflows specifiers now use, creating friction at the point manufacturers most need to be easy to find and evaluate.
The guide also highlighted a disconnect in how manufacturers use customer data. Almost all respondents (98%) said customer data is important, yet 11% admitted they do not use it.
Jo Keit, commercial president at Hubexo UKI, said: “The findings from this research highlight a clear opportunity for manufacturers to strengthen how they influence specification. Relationships remain critical, but the way they are supported is changing. Earlier visibility, structured product data and consistent engagement are becoming essential to staying relevant throughout the design process.”
NBS said manufacturers with limited resources should focus investment on being present on the platforms specifiers already use to research and evaluate products, presenting technical information in formats compatible with digital workflows, and using data to understand where specification decisions are being made and lost.
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